> [!cite]- Metadata > 2025-05-09 02:32 > Status: #schema > Tags: [[5 - Atlas/Tags/Writing]] [[5 - Atlas/Tags/Wisdom]] [[Thinking]] [[Technique]] [[Knowledge]] [[Concept]] [[Technique]] `Read Time: 2m 20s` ### 1. **Elaboration + Generation Effect** - **What**: Explaining ideas _in your own words_ or trying to recall answers before seeing them strengthens memory. - **How**: After reading something, close the book/note and write a Zettel from memory, or narrate it aloud (like you’re teaching a friend or your future self). --- ### 2. **Spaced Retrieval + Interleaving** - **What**: Review material just before you’re about to forget it. Mix concepts from different domains to increase retention and creative crossovers. - **How**: Use a spaced repetition plugin (like Obsidian’s _Obsidian SR_) or create “interleaved decks” with different domains (e.g., one question on character development, one on urban design, one on metaphysics). --- ### 3. **Dual Coding (Words + Images)** - **What**: Combining verbal and visual representations helps memory and clarity. - **How**: Create mind maps, sketches, flowcharts, or even symbolic diagrams of your world-building systems and character arcs. Tools: Excalidraw plugin in Obsidian or Affinity Designer/Concepts App. --- ### 4. **Dialectical Thinking (Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis)** - **What**: Think in opposites. Contrast two conflicting ideas to reach new conclusions. - **How**: For a character or world concept, ask: “What would its opposite look like?” → “How might both be true?” → “What synthesis emerges?” Great for theme-building in novels or resolving complexity in abstract ideas. --- ### 5. **Mental Simulation + Imaginary Debate** - **What**: Use imagination to simulate how someone else would reason through your idea. - **How**: Ask: “How would [Socrates, Einstein, a ruthless critic, a child, an alien] question or build upon this idea?” This also works beautifully for building complex character motives in fiction. --- ### 6. **Constraint-Based Thinking** - **What**: Creativity thrives with limitations. - **How**: Impose tight rules (e.g., your world has no written language; your characters all have a flaw no one talks about). Let the constraint sharpen invention and deepen narrative logic. --- ### 7. **Idea Evolution Loop (Meta-Zettelkasten)** - **What**: Don’t just write notes—track how ideas _change_ over time. - **How**: Every few weeks, review old notes and tag with: - 🧠 Insight developed - ❓ Question evolved - 🔁 Contradiction emerged - ⚡ Shift in perspective This creates a **living system of thought**—your ideas start to “grow up.” --- ### 8. **Knowledge Cartography** - **What**: Building mental maps of your thinking domains. - **How**: Use the Graph View in Obsidian, or manually draw maps of your idea clusters: - “What are the central nodes of my thinking?” - “Which ideas are isolated and need connection?” - “Where are the black holes—things I don’t understand?” --- ### Bonus Technique: **Constraint Journaling (10x Thinking Prompts)** Each day, answer a few constraint-rich prompts like: - "What am I wrong about?" - "What’s a belief I hold that could ruin my novel if unexamined?" - "What if I could only write with 100 words a day—what would I say?" This trains **meta-cognition**—awareness of your own thinking process. --- ### Suggested Daily Workflow (90 Min) | Time | Activity | | ---- | ---------------------------------------------------- | | 15m | Spaced review of notes | | 20m | Read / absorb high-quality input | | 15m | Feynman-style writeup or sketch | | 20m | Meta-zettelkasten (link, question, test) | | 20m | Creative project: world-building or character sketch | --- ### **References**